We are made to feel sorry for Juliet as nothing is going right for her and she has no one to turn to. Although her father may have a point in saying that she has not obeyed him, who is to say that she has to. So this should not be taken as an insult because Juliet has done nothing wrong in her eyes.
In Act III Scene 5 Lady Capulet tells Juliet that,
“The county Paris at Saint Peter’s Church Shall happily make thee there a joyful bride”.
However Juliet is completely unimpressed by Paris and says,
“He shall not make me there a joyful bride!”
Because Lord Capulet is so sure of his choice for her and doesn’t think once of Juliet refusing, he sees it as a favour and expects a thank you. In return however he she refuses his offer (command) and he is told that Juliet does not and isn’t going to marry Paris. This offends him very much, which makes him shocked, full of hatred, and disappointed.
The reason why Lord Capulet is so angry is because he has gone through a lot of trouble to find her a suitable partner. He thought he had found a charming and decent man to marry Juliet and to him she is refusing for no real reason. He is also frustrated, because he had made plans for the wedding and agreed with Paris that he could marry his daughter, and it was all organized and she is throwing it all back in his face, by saying,
“proud can I never be o what I hate”.
This makes Capulet annoyed so he replies,
“Proud and I thank you, and I thank you not!”
here is he showing sarcasm of what Juliet has said. Lord Capulet even starts threatening Juliet by saying,
“Or I will drag thee on a hurdle thither”
which means he will drag her to the marriage to wed Paris.
However Juliet isn’t refusing on purpose to be a “disobedient wretch” as Lord Capulet calls her, because she has a reason, which she is keeping secret, this is that she is already married to Romeo for love. She cannot tell her family this as he is an enemy of her family, as he belongs to the Montagues who are rivals with the Capulets. She is in a dilemma when her parents tell her to marry Paris as this means she is being either disobedient if she doesn’t marry Paris or unfaithful if she does to her beloved Romeo. Juliet cannot help her love for Romeo so this is why she is in a difficult spot. This is one reason why I don’t think Juliet is a “disobedient wretch” because she is married to another person and she cannot help it if she loves Romeo: therefore if she married Paris she would not be true to herself. Lord Capulet doesn’t know this and so he thinks she is doing it because she is being stubborn and not listening.
Juliet is in a difficult position because of the rivalry between the families which was not her fault, and love is not something that is easily taken away. She cannot help the fact that her parents hate Romeo’s family and so Juliet is left to feel guilty about marrying Romeo and showing her true feelings, but has to decide what is right for her.
In the beginning their fate was predicted as “star-crossed lovers”. So if it was their fate then Juliet could not help but be disobedient at that point, as it was coincidence that Juliet was given that information at that time. She feels that there is no other way out except death, so she can be with Romeo and not stuck with Paris. She doesn’t feel she has a choice when it comes to her fathers argument as she couldn’t imagine life without Romeo.
I believe that although the word “disobedient” may be right it should be taken as a fact but not a criticism, because disobedience is not always bad depending on the command and how you and the other person or people feel about it. When “disobedient” and “wretch” are put together then it is meant as an insult as well not just a fact. So I believe that the phrase “disobedient wretch” is said in a context of an insult, which I think is quite harsh. Although disobedient maybe true from Capulets point of view, it doesn’t mean it is a bad thing if he’s in the wrong. I think Juliet should be felt sorry for as she has no one to turn to, her mother says,
“Talk not to me for I’ll not speak a word”
and the nurse just leaves her on her own. As for Lord Capulet he is just being selfish and is trying to control Juliet to protect his reputation.
